New Shun 1730

It is difficult to persuade people to do good, but it is much easier to induce others to do evil.

The existence of the system stems from the disbelief in the inherent goodness of human nature, thus relying on the improvement of the system to make up for all kinds of evil loopholes.

It's very easy to tempt people to do evil. You just need to manipulate the system in the opposite direction and create leaks everywhere.

Just like a granary, if you want to prevent rats, you should build a granary, build walls, and ram the soil to raise cats. And if you want to recruit rats, you don't need to catch them in the ground and throw them in. You just need to tear a hole in the wall, and they will be full soon.

Liu Yu's dislike of the landlord class is just out of class hatred as a spokesman for Dashun's emerging bourgeoisie, and does not involve moral issues.

However, the special circumstances of northern Jiangsu have caused northern Jiangsu to complete "rural gentrification" earlier than elsewhere.

Ocean tides, embankment breaches, the Yellow River, Hongze Lake, and salinization.

From the Song Dynasty when the Yellow River flowed southward to the Ming Dynasty when the capital was moved to Beijing and the Grand Canal was restored, water transportation blocked the Huaihe River and flooded the Huaihe River to wash away sand and protect the north but not the south. These natural disasters and man-made disasters combined to cause harm, and those who could be left behind were bound to be evil gentry.

Because... good people simply cannot make the leap to becoming a country gentry by relying on primitive accumulation.

This problem is very simple, it is the folk custom of "eating big households" in northern Jiangsu. It’s not good to live in a wealthy family, where evil gentry have high-walled compounds with muskets. Those who are eaten are mainly small landowners. Big landowners are not only not eaten, but sometimes they also serve as leaders of Taoist sects and take the lead in organizing organizations.

Aren't there examples in the past where people who were so audacious that they dared to borrow food from a member of staff's house were all buried alive, and were labeled as having evil plans and ambitions to cause trouble?

I'm really confused. Can I borrow the food from the health worker's house?

The tendency to take advantage of large households stems from the fact that the economic foundation of small farmers here has completely collapsed. The problem of power in northern Jiangsu and southern Shandong was already pointed out by a great scholar during the Mongolian and Yuan Dynasties to the point where "the male and female tenant farmers are shameless and cannot hold back their desires." They pay huge taxes to the master's family and are not allowed to get married. They even engage in wild affairs, which is very immoral."

Natural disasters occur frequently, and small farmers go bankrupt and their economies collapse at a rate several times faster than elsewhere. Perhaps the annexation cycle that took 200 years to complete elsewhere may only take 30 years for Northern Jiangsu, which is tortured by the Yellow River, Huaihe River, and Tidal Waves.

The economic base determines the superstructure. To solve the problems here, relying on morality and Confucianism is of no use. Only the economic base problems here can be completely solved.

If the orange grows in Huainan, it becomes orange, and if it grows in the north of Huaihe, it becomes orange. It's not that oranges don't want to grow in Huaibei, it's just that oranges can only die in Huaibei, and only zhizi can survive in Huaibei.

This realistic basis allowed Liu Yu's poisonous plan to lure the snake out of its hole to be implemented very smoothly.

All that is needed is a Imperial River Works grain exchange coupon that "does not need to be scrutinized, is almost equivalent to unnumbered banknotes, and is full of loopholes."

His first stop in northern Jiangsu was Funing.

The honor guards and guards they brought were assigned to each village according to the list provided by the county magistrate, and all "Master Huang" from each village were invited to the county seat.

After the banquet was placed, Liu Yu went straight.

"You must all know that the imperial court wants to build the Huaihe River, right? The route has been decided like this. Whose fields will be flooded and whose ancestral graves will be soaked? Don't talk to me about these things. I don't care about these things. Just go to Hehuang Governor Huai went to argue. I am not here for this kind of thing."

The squires present thought that they could only admit this kind of thing, what else could they do?

Obviously you don't dare to argue, it just depends on who has the ability.

In the past, several high-ranking officials who controlled rivers flooded their ancestral graves and properties because of flood control. It is not too late for a gentleman to take revenge. Wouldn't he be beaten down in the future? We don’t have the ability, and we don’t have relatives who are high-ranking officials in the court, so we can only endure it.

Liu Yu said again: "I won't go into the benefits of building the Huaihe River. The significance, the benefits to you, including the transformation of your land from bad farmland to good farmland, how to calculate taxes and rent in the future, that is a matter for the future. "

"Your Majesty asked me to leave the town. I have many things to do in Songjiang Mansion. Some people have suggested that these gentry in northern Jiangsu are different from other places. I have also heard a lot..."

When he said this, the squire's hearts trembled, thinking that all they heard were bad words.

Unexpectedly, Liu Yu said: "It's just that Northern Jiangsu is prone to disasters. It is necessary to prevent sea tides, floods, typhoons, food plundering, and village deprivation... We also need to repair the polders, especially the polders where the whole village takes shelter during floods." son."

"That's why some people say that the gentry in northern Jiangsu are all capable of organizing. They are like the scholars during the time when the country was divided and the founding of the country, and the knights in the story of the Western Yi. If the court is in chaos, they can be used as bandit leaders for armed robbery. "If the imperial court is not in chaos, it can also organize the construction of polders and other things, which is different from the gentry elsewhere."

The words seemed to be good words.

But what came out of Liu Yu's mouth was indescribably harsh, and there were so many heart-wrenching remarks that no one dared to answer.

To put it nicely, it’s called energetic.

To put it bluntly, it is called a return to semi-serfdom.

While the squires were still thinking that this was just good talk, Liu Yu finally said something that made them happy.

"You have such ability and organizational ability. Therefore, someone suggested that we start a contracting system here."

"In doing this, I also considered that the officials can't control it. If the local officials are involved, a lot of things will happen and they will have to intervene."

"Therefore, without them, the imperial court directly communicated with the rural sages, and money and rice were also distributed to them."

"How to dig, how deep to dig, how wide to dig, the court has its own talents."

"Dig, organize the people to come and divide the work. I think you can definitely take on this responsibility. It's similar to digging a polder."

"Any river worker who comes to work will get three kilograms of rice and flour, three coins of salt, half a pickled radish, and four taels of bean cakes per person per day, which is considered as a full work. If he comes to work every day, he will get 33 coins, which is calculated according to the official price. , one tael per month.”

"Whether it's rice or wheat, I'm afraid we won't be used to rice here, so we can each report it when the time comes."

"You will also organize people to transport the rice and noodles approved by the imperial court. It is impossible for the imperial court to distribute the money to everyone. The imperial court will only send people to inspect the construction sites. If you get the old, weak, sick and disabled to make a living, then what will happen? I can’t get the rice or money.”

"In short, the imperial court will give you money and grain, and you will organize people to do the work. You will also provide people to cook for food and other things. There will be one cook for every fifty people, and the cooking wages will be paid. I’ve made a list here.”

"I will transport the rice to all parts of the coast. You can also organize people to carry it. Every thirty miles, you can get two out of a hundred."

"I have attracted many people here to Nanyang over the years. I guess you also know my reputation. I have always said that I am always good at everything, and I will never be short of anything."

"Of course, you also have benefits. The money will be calculated according to the allocated river construction section. The amount of excavation and the contract amount will be accepted by me. If it passes the inspection, I will give you the money directly. Silver, banknotes, copper coins, whatever."

"Do you understand? If you understand, continue talking. If you don't understand, just ask quickly."

"How should I put it? It's a contract under the supervision of an official. If you say it's a contract, I will send people to count the heads of the workers, instead of directly paying you and giving you rice bags to do the work. As for why it has to be like this, it's hard to say. It’s so clear. It’s hard to explain clearly, but you all understand.”

This section of the river is the easier part to dig.

What really requires high-organization, high-intensity and high-tech excavation is the starting point of Gaojiayan and the estuary where it enters the sea. The remaining places only need the supervision of technical personnel as long as it doesn't rain heavily.

It is necessary to clear out the main canal before the rainy season in March and April, and then slowly repair it in the future. Otherwise, if it cannot be completed before April or May, it will be wasted and will be completely scrapped if it rains next year.

The working period was the slack season, and it was the first time that the imperial court really used the commission money, investing a huge amount of money.

According to the project volume estimate, just to provide the people with the most basic food security and recruitment money, it will require about 2.4 million dan of grain and 2.5 million taels of labor and recruitment silver.

This is the cost price. That's why it is said that it will almost take the whole country to prosper Dashun, because this is just an initial attack on the city in the winter, and it will continue to be filled in the future, and tens of millions of taels will be spent in a few years.

At this time, the people had no fat or water in their stomachs, and the food they ate was very poor. Two or three kilograms of rice noodles and four taels of bean cakes fed to cows, which would sound scary in later generations, were actually only half full.

This time the court spent a lot of money, and the emperor also told Liu Yu that some things could only be done in winter, and some things could be done in spring, summer, autumn and winter, so Liu Yu was asked to prioritize.

Liu Yu knew it well, and now that he said this method, the squires nodded immediately.

Everyone knows that Liu Yu will not be short of money. After all, he is a stupid person who is guaranteed to lose money here.

Even if the court does not give money, the squire actually has the obligation to be an organizer when organizing local labor. After all, the imperial power does not extend to the county. If the county magistrate wants to do something, it is impossible to conjure a well-regulated party and mass organization out of thin air. He can only rely on the gentry.

In addition, annual floods and annual relief also require organization and coordination by squires and statistics by scholars.

Several distinguished squires stood up at this time and said: "The Duke has made it clear, and we all understand it. This is indeed a good idea. The tool for digging the river..."

Liu Yu nodded and said: "The tools are naturally produced by the imperial court. There is still some time before construction starts, and many women here are good at weaving. The imperial court will purchase the rattan baskets at a price, and you will contract the quantity. The imperial court will give you the money directly, and you will distribute it to the people in the village. , Don’t skimp, building the river is a major matter for the country, for you, and for the Huaihe River upstream of Hongze Lake.”

"Of course, no matter how much you contract, the court will not deprive you of your benefits. If you pass the inspection, you will be rewarded on a calculated basis. You can just transport it to various construction sections by yourself."

"As for shovels, spades, etc., you can count the number of people and report them, and they will be distributed to you."

"Before starting work, go to the contracting area and set up a simple house. Make a fire, cook, and sleep."

"The imperial court also granted permission to cut down several salt grass forests that were originally prohibited from cultivation for living, cooking and heating purposes."

After that, Liu Yu took out the key prop for this tempting crime.

A sample stack of food stamps.

The workmanship is very fine, and it is completely based on the banknote printing technology of Songjiang Prefecture Bank.

But what I did was very nonsense and too free.

No matter who you are, you can get food with the receipt.

Anonymous and unnumbered, but difficult to imitate.

The fish Liu Yu catches is simply a straight hook and a salty bait: someone who can make such a craftsmanship cannot even think of the most basic registration and numbering management system.

But what is required is that those who are willing take the bait.

He asked people to distribute these food coupons to a group of squires and said: "When the time comes, shipping stations will be built at several seasides. There is no need to doubt the imperial court's shipping capabilities. You will be shipped at a discount of thirty miles per hour. ”

"I have also inspected that this place is made of Yellow River clay. As long as it doesn't rain, it is as hard as a rock and there is a flat plain. If you are strong, you can pull a load of several hundred kilograms with a big cart. You can achieve anything within thirty miles. Second, including wages, it’s a big animal. Even if you feed the animal directly with rice and wheat, it’s not a loss.”

“We will divide the river section into sections later. You can send people to check out the spots and familiarize yourself with the terrain. You can exchange the coupons for food directly and leave as you please.”